what happens when you have french in high school and you totally forgot it? go through dad's books and find a "basic" french book and take it and decide to study and re-learn everything. it's totally good.
This was my textbook for my French course in High School. A very well written book it is deceptively thin for the amount of material in it. It starts off at a gentle curve but within no time its difficulty increases exponentially. However due to a conversational style of teaching the language, at times as dialogues between people in a certain context and at times as essays about various places or events, it is a engaging read.
However this book alone will not be useful for a non French speaking student. This book will have to be complemented with a good French-English dictionary, as well as a competent instructor (without an instructor the book can feel daunting after 1/3 of the way through). The instructor is particularly important if the student wants to learn how to speak the language too.
Although dated in terms of cutural significance, it's more than worth following if you've got a good professor. The theory-text-exercise balance is perfect as far as I'm concerned.